


A Simple Deal

by prissygirl



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M, One Shot, Rumbelle - Freeform, Rumbelle Showdown 2016, Winning Fic, enchanted forest
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-15
Updated: 2016-08-15
Packaged: 2018-08-09 00:48:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,499
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7780381
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/prissygirl/pseuds/prissygirl
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It wasn’t the deal she had expected. But it was the deal she was destined to make.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Simple Deal

When Belle had called upon the legendary Dark One to help her save her kingdom from the ogres, she had prepared herself for the unexpected.  
But as she stood looking out the window, still in a daze from the deal he had offered her, she realized no amount of planning could have ever prepared her for _this_.

“Tick-tock, dearie. I don’t have forever, you know.”

Bracing herself, Belle turned to face Rumplestiltskin, who was perched on her settee, grinning manically.

“Excuse me for needing some time,” Belle said, not quite able to keep the annoyance out of her voice. Her companion may be the Dark One, but that was no excuse for him to be _rude_. “It’s not every day I’m offered a marriage proposal from an evil sorcerer.”

“My time is precious, princess,” he snarled. “And you’ve already wasted too much of it.”

She rolled her eyes. “Then go, if I’m such a bother.”

As Belle predicted, Rumplestiltskin stayed put. She let out a triumphant ‘hah’.

“That’s what I thought,” she murmured under her breath. Taking half a dozen steps across the room, she stopped only inches from his face, enjoying his startled expression before he covered it up.

“I think you need this deal as much as I do. So stop your scowling and let me think.” Belle plopped down on the seat next to him, refusing to let him intimidate her. She didn’t think many people dared to sit that close to him. From the wary look on his face, she knew she was right.

Considering it a small triumph, Belle returned to thinking over his offer. Despite the strangeness of the proposal, it was a much better deal than she had expected in many ways.

The war with the ogres was going far from well. Her father had died just a month ago in battle, leaving their small kingdom in chaos. Though Belle was the only heir, the law required her to take a husband before she could be crowned. But with the ogres weeks from wiping them out completely, she didn’t have time for balls and marriage negotiations. Already there were whispers of rebellion in the city streets – she needed to act now.

Unfortunately, her best bet seemed to be sitting next to her at the moment. Belle was under no illusion to why he wanted to marry her; it was the one thing he had actually been straightforward about.

Avonlea was not an important kingdom in the Enchanted Forest by any means, but it did have one rather unique claim to fame – a magic mirror. Only those born or married into the royal family could look upon it and reveal its truth. Though Belle had purposely never looked into it, she knew its knowledge had brought her ancestors equal parts heartache and happiness over the centuries.

The thing Belle couldn’t figure out was why the Dark One of all people would want to look into it.

“Perhaps I’d be more willing to accept if I knew why you sought the mirror,” she prodded gently.  

“My reasons,” he said, rolling his ‘r’ dramatically, “are my own.”

“Well if you can’t be honest with me, I don’t see how this is supposed to work!”

As was her habit when she was anxious, Belle started to worry her lower lip with her teeth. She was shocked to see his eyes zero in on the motion, a strange flicker of longing flashing across his eyes.

“Oh no,” she said, raising a hand between them. “If you’re thinking that’s part of the bargain, you can forget about the entire deal.”

His eyes snapped back up to hers. “What?”

“I’m not interested in being your…dark lady of the night!”

Rumplestiltskin just stared at her in confusion until the meaning seemed to dawn on him. He let out a high-pitched giggle and wiggled a finger at her as if she was a naughty child. “You flatter yourself, dearie. But I’m not interested in sharing your bed.” He sniffed disdainfully. “In any case, I doubt you’d be able to shut up long enough for us to accomplish anything.”

Belle’s temper flared at his words. Without thinking, she grabbed the nearest pillow and smacked him in the shoulder with it.

Once again she was rewarded with a look of shock from him. Perhaps it was her reckless bravery that her father had always warned her about, but she rather enjoyed getting a rise out of Rumplestiltskin.

She waved the pillow menacingly at him. “Next time, I’m throwing you out.”

“Oh, I tremble in my leather breeches,” he sneered before unconsciously tugging the pillow behind him closer, in case of further attack.

The thought of engaging in a pillow fight with the Dark One was too surreal to contemplate. Before she could dissolve into a fit of giggles, Belle forced herself to focus on the options before her.

Though Rumplestiltskin had been close-lipped about why he wanted the mirror, she figured it had to be important. She knew enough about magic to know that long-term problems like hers were not easily solved without large amounts of magic. The mirror’s truth must be precious indeed to him if he were willing to expend that much magic to get it.

The marriage would only last for a day, she reminded herself. After the wedding, they would go straight to the mirror. Once he had his answers, he would hold up his end of the bargain and then leave her to rule her people in peace.

“You have to give me your word that nothing bad will happen to my people as a result of our deal. Including those involved in the rebellion.”  

He held his hand over his heart in mock earnestness. “I solemnly swear that I will let no _bad_ happen. Though if I were you, I would squish that rebel scum into the dirt beneath my heel.”

At her frown, he merely shrugged, adding “Of course, I’ve been told I’m not really a people person.”

His eyebrows shot up as Belle let out a bark of laughter, which she quickly tried to cover by slapping her hand over her mouth. Out of the corner of her eye, she thought she saw a hint of a genuine smile playing at the corner of his lips.

Somehow, the small sign of humanity made Belle feel better about the whole situation. She was coming to suspect that there was more to Rumplestiltskin than met the eye.

“Alright,” Belle said, drawing on every ounce of her bravery to keep her voice from betraying her nerves. “I accept.”

************

The next few days passed by in a blur. Belle had thought she wouldn’t see Rumplestiltskin again until the ceremony at the end of the week, but he seemed to keep finding reasons to pop in almost every day, usually just in time to share afternoon tea with her.

When he wasn’t actively trying to keep her at arm’s length, she found his odd quips and mannerisms rather endearing. Belle found herself regretting that they had so little time to get to know each other; she would have enjoyed the chance to peel away his many layers.

Most curious still to her was his desire to use the mirror. By the time the wedding day arrived, however, Belle found herself no closer to discovering his reasons.

The ceremony passed by unremarkably enough for the most part, though Belle’s heart gave an odd little thump as Rumplestiltskin slid her mother’s ring onto her finger, his smile surprisingly shy and hesitant.

Now, as she watched Rumplestiltskin approach the mirror, Belle felt herself rather reluctant to part ways with the eccentric sorcerer. Lost in her own conflicted feelings, she almost missed the soft gasp that came from the man himself, as he stood gazing into the mirror.

“I don’t understand,” he said, his voice barely above a whisper. “This is the legendary Mirror of Desire. It’s supposed to show me what I desire most and lead me to it.”

Belle shook her head. “Not exactly. The mirror shows you the person most likely to be your ‘heart’s desire’ – your soulmate, in other words.” She stepped towards him, equally dreading the answer but needing to know  _who_ had captured his heart. “Why? Who does it show?”

He turned towards her, his pupils blown wide. “ _You_.” His voice was thick with disbelief. “It’s showing _you_.”

Belle strode forward. “You must be mistaken. I can’t be –” She stopped abruptly in front of the mirror. “Oh dear.”

“What is it?” he asked cautiously. “Do you see – what do you see?”

Belle felt slightly light-headed as she turned to face her husband. She took a deep breath before reaching for his hand. It was warm and slightly sweaty, and she could tell he was just as nervous as she was in that moment.

“Well, I suppose it’s a good thing we got married,” Belle said softly, her eyes meeting his hopeful gaze. “Because I see _you_ , too.”

**Author's Note:**

> Author’s Note: I hope you enjoyed this! I realized the other day that I had never properly published it and decided that late is better than never. This was my final entry for the 2016 Rumbelle Showdown and it’s thanks to this little guy that I somehow managed to win (still can’t believe THAT happened). 
> 
> The prompts were “Let no bad happen, Rebellion, Long-term problems”.


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